27. Zephyr
Zephyr
“You want me to, what?” Honey looks between Phoenix and his motorcycle again.
“Ride on the back.” Phoenix pats the seat. “It’s easy, you’ll love it. Motorcycle riding is such a freeing feeling. It’s as close as you can get to flying.”
She’s shaking her head back and forth. The way she’s leaning back from the bike is almost like she’s about to turn on her heel and run.
“Phoenix, let’s take the car, we’ll have bags of clothes and stuff to bring back anyway. We can take Honey out on the road later.” I check my watch, we’re getting close to one of our appointment times.
Omega boutiques are so diverse and unique that shopping for omegas is practically a sport. But the Family Baron name means we were able to get reservations at two popular boutiques right away.
Unlike the places that sell less glitzy gowns and high-end athletic wear that Fox would take Evangeline to, the shops I picked are more cozy, or less . . . stuffy.
The weird dress Honey put back on today after I almost ruined it in the washing machine is not so formfitting.
It’s more of a sack than a dress. So I hope the boutiques I picked, with Mom’s guidance, will provide something she’s comfortable in.
We need Honey to be as comfortable as possible now.
Which is why custom-tailoring clothes, Mom’s usual go-to, was out of the question.
“Alright, fine.” Phoenix sighs and puts the helmet back on the seat of his bike. “To the cage it is.”
“Cage?” Honey narrows her eyes at him and then spins on her heels to face me, her brow furrowed and lips pressed into that judgmental thin line.
“It’s a metaphor, not an actual cage. Just compared to our bikes, it feels like one to us.” I wrap my arm around her and lead her back from the bike parking lot to where we keep the cars.
I already got permission, and the keys, from Fox for the large black SUV they drive Evangeline around in, just in case Honey refused the bikes.
I don’t love the idea of a ‘cage’ either. I’d love to be on the bike. Closed and confined spaces are still hard. It hasn’t been that long since it felt like all four walls were closing in around me. But a car has an engine, it moves, and you’re only as trapped as the next spin of the tire.
“Well, I don’t want to hurt you.” Honey worries her bottom lip, looking back at the bikes.
“It’s okay, it won’t bother us to ride in the car.” I give her a squeeze and kiss the top of her head. “It will be painful, though, to not see you walking around in my shirts all the time. They look so much better on you than me.”
That makes her laugh. She shakes her head. “You look pretty good in your own clothes.”
A compliment. It blazes through me, and my shadow dances around her side, nuzzling up against her. Honey doesn’t flinch away necessarily, but she does seem a little uncertain about him brushing her like that. I slowly withdraw my shadow, trying to be respectful.
Honey is incredibly uncomfortable. Like when she was in the basement with Fox working on her arm, Honey is stiff, each joint barely moving, and when it does move, it’s robotically.
The beta, our sales attendant, tries another smile. “How do you like this?”
“She hates it, obviously.” Phoenix puts his head in his hands. He’s seated next to me on the couch by the pedestal to try clothes on.
“I didn’t say that.” Honey’s voice is small as she makes eye contact with me through the mirror in front of her. “It’s fine, really, this is good.”
“Good is not good enough.” The beta shakes her head.
I stand and walk over to the beta attendant. “Could you give us a minute?”
“Sure, I’ll just go look for something different.” She smiles wide and excuses herself through the drape to the station we’re partitioned off in.
“What don’t you like?” I look down at Honey’s body. She’s wearing a deep purple long-sleeved T-shirt, a goldenrod-colored puffer vest, and a pair of tight straight-leg jeans that make her ass look phenomenal.
“I don’t hate it.” She insists, but tears are welling up in her eyes.
“You’re not hurting my feelings. I didn’t make the clothes. What don’t you like?” I push again while brushing a lock of hair out of her face. “You can say anything you want, be as mean or inappropriate as you want. No one will judge you.”
Her fingers twitch for a minute, and Honey looks between me and the mirror one more time before saying, “Why is everything so tight? I don’t feel like I can move. Why are there so many bright colors?”
“Skirts, baggy jeans, loose tops, and muted tones. On it.” Phoenix shoots up from the couch and darts out of the curtain, following the beta.
“I don’t mean to complain, but I don’t have any money. The clothes back home were for everyone. I—”
Kissing Honey, I pull her body closer to mine, silencing her words.
When I break the kiss, it’s to purr softly just for her to hear.
“We have lots of money and don’t hardly ever spend it.
Let us spend some of our money on you, and let us buy you what you like, not what you think we like.
Just be honest with the beta, tell her what you are and aren’t comfortable with.
Be strong for yourself. Look how far you’ve already come. ”
Honey nods, but I’m not sure she believes it. When Phoenix comes back with the attendant and a new mountain of clothes to try on, she gives me a wide-eyed glance before drawing in a deep breath and trying again.